XIAMEN (China) (Sputnik) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that it is necessary to maintain positive dynamics in Russian-Indian trade turnover.
"In the first half of this year, there has been a significant growth of 21.9 percent [in bilateral turnover]. Of course, we need to maintain this positive trend," Putin said during a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Putin added that he recalled Modi’s recent visit to Russia during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in June.
"We worked well at that time. I must say that the results, including of our work with you, are, of course, positive. We maintain constant relations at the level of political, foreign departments, governments, we are actively developing defense industry cooperation," Putin said.
The Russian president noted that relations between the two countries were strategic and had deep historical roots, adding that Russia was waiting for a delegation from India to visit the Eastern Economic Forum in Russia’s Vladivostok.
The BRICS summit in China's Xiamen is being held from September 3-5 in the new so-called BRICS Plus format, with the leaders of such non-BRICS countries as Egypt, Mexico, Thailand, Guinea and Tajikistan also taking part in the event along with the leaders of the five BRICS nations, namely Russia, China, Brazil, South Africa and India.
